Coal blocks were allotted to private companies for captive mining through a 1993 amendment to the Coal Mines Nationalisation Act (1973). However, the CAG found that the blocks were not allotted in a transparent manner, neither had the companies begun production.

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India has one of the biggest coal reserves in the world, ranking only after China and the United States. As of April 1, 2014 India’s reserves were estimated at a total of 301.56 billion tonnes by the Geological Survey of India (GSI). Of this, ‘prime’ coking coal stood at 5.313 billion tonnes, medium and semi-coking coals amounted to 28.76 billion tonnes, non-coking coals stood at 266 billion tonnes and tertiary coal at 1.49 billion tonnes. More than half of India’s...